Wow, that's a new one to me. I don't recall ever having any beers from Finland - or Norway and Sweden for that matter.

Two Norwegian beers you might want to stay away from, assuming you could even find them, are Hansa and Polar. Now granted, the Norwegian Navy provided the crew on my boat with about 30 cases of Polar Beer free of charge for a big party they were throwing us, but it still tasted like warm Busch Light. Come to think of it that may be why they gave it to us... Hansa was the local brew in Bergen, kind of a local derivation of the Hansa from Germany brought up but the Hanseatic merchants a couple hundred years ago. It really wasn't that bad, however you'd get the worst headaches after a few of 'em. Rumor had it that they had a fair amount of formaldehyde in them; I just know I got the worst hangover in my life off of that beer!
To paraphrase Eric Idle, "This is a bottle with a message in, and the message is Beware. This is not a beer for drinking...this is a beer for laying down and avoiding."

_________________________ Who's the more foolish, the fool or the fool who follows him?

Upon further research in Brewing Techniques and The Finnish Society for Traditional Beers, it appears that my ignorance should not be entirely unexpected. I do not know how "traditional" the version you had was, but the style is apparently very old and quite rustic - including wooden mash tuns, open fermentation, bouquets of juniper twigs and finnish baker's yeast. I'm pleased (but not surprised) that you enjoyed the Goose Island version; that brewery is wonderful, but I strongly suspect that they dramatically modernized the procedures.

At any rate, Sahti seems to be rare, even in Finland. There is another interesting article from Michael Jackson.

In what ways did the beer you enjoyed differ from similar Belgian or Flemish rustic ales, or from Weinheinstephaner-types? I'd assume that the replacement of hop profile with juniper is the defining characteristic, although the reviews suggest that the Goose Island version expresses Rye pretty profoundly.

Honestly, your best bet might be to brew it yourself I discovered a mention that Lammin Sahti Oy produces a bottled version, but the possibility seems rather remote, and they do not offer an english version website.

I deeply appreciate you providing me the nudge to learn!

My dear wife gave me several interesting beers for Christmas, and I will try to report on them in due course.

Ken and I enjoyed a Maredsous 10 (triple ale) last night while giving the M3s and PB10 a workout. Very nice! Light amber color, with a very thick head. Smooooth but not boring - good mouthfeel (oooh, tasting terms ) and a nice finish. Even Ken liked it!

Ok for all those Guinness drinkers out there, I've never had one. I've been drinking beer since 9th grade, and am now 38, and have tried many types of domestic/import but never Guinness.

So what can I expect? Should I try it out of the tap at a bar, if they know the correct way to pour Guinness? Or, can the can's or bottles with the special Widget be just as good? According to the website there is an extra stout version, but what about the regular Draught, is there just one kind or different flavors?

Randy, my understanding is that there are literally dozens of different types of Guinness throughout the world. It is actually a fairly subtle beer by American hop/alcohol standards, and the relative hardness of the water makes a profound difference in the overall flavor profile.

Like Peter said, a live, draught beer is always going to be better than a canned one, but the widget version is pretty good.

Thanks guys, I may have to give one a try this weekend. The Guinness website is pretty cool, they over some visuals explaining how the widget system in the bottles/cans works to create the turbulance that ultimately seperates into the two parts......